This invention relates to a method and apparatus for tracking usage of a network, and more specifically, to a method and apparatus for monitoring selected network activities. The invention also relates to a method and apparatus for rewarding users for performing particular activities on a network.
Computer networks, defined generally as the highways for information, are used in almost every facet of home and office life. Because of this, network traffic generally is the subject of substantial examination. Many products have been developed that can monitor network traffic and the flow of traffic past a given point in a computer network. Many of the network monitoring programs that are available can also monitor traffic on the Internet. Generally, these programs detect traffic patterns instead of the senders and receivers.
Recently, a few programs have appeared that run on the computer accessing the network; these programs monitor the information transmitted and received. These programs have been developed out of a concern that children can gain access to xe2x80x9cadultxe2x80x9d material over the Internet or otherwise. One example of such programs is SurfWatch, which blocks certain Internet traffic from being accessed at a personal computer running the program. SurfWatch is directed to helping reduce the risk of children and others uncovering sexually explicit material on the Internet.
Another such program is called Net Nanny. Net Nanny is a software program that allows its operator to monitor and/or block access to data residing on or passing through a personal computer, including information arriving at the computer from a network such as the Internet. Net Nanny screens data arriving at or passing through a computer in real-time for matches with a pre-stored list, or dictionary. If a match is found, access to the information is either monitored or blocked.
Programs like SurfWatch and Net Nanny monitor access to a network looking for keywords. When the keywords are found, the result is to record or block associated and ostensibly offending information. A drawback of these programs is that they do not permit the activity of a user to be monitored and comprehensively or selectively recorded and selectively delivered to a central site. Another drawback of these programs is that they do not allow a user to preselect certain activities that should not be monitored. Yet another drawback of these programs is that they do not allow the network user to determine what activity to monitor or not to monitor.
Another type of monitoring program is called SiteTrack. SiteTrack works in connection with a World Wide Web server and tracks users as they move through a site on the World Wide Web. Such tracking is done using two different methodologies, one called xe2x80x9ctokens,xe2x80x9d and the other called xe2x80x9ccookies.xe2x80x9d
A SiteTrack cookie is an identifier stored on the user""s computer. When a user accesses a SiteTrack""ed server, if the user""s browser supports cookies, the server assigns a unique session ID, or xe2x80x9ccookiexe2x80x9d to the user. The session ID is stored on the user""s computer and presented with all further requests to the server. The server can therefore identify users and monitor their activity as they move through the Web site.
Alternatively, where the user""s browser does not support cookies, SiteTrack can insert xe2x80x9ctokens,xe2x80x9d or alphanumeric strings, into the URLs embedded in hypertext markup language (HTML) pages that are sent to a user""s browser. When a user links to another HTML page via the embedded URL, the embedded token can be recognized, and the user""s activity can thus be monitored from the server. The token process has a drawback in that it can only monitor users when they are linking between pages on a single Web site. A further drawback is that once the user links to another Web site, the user is not xe2x80x9crecognizedxe2x80x9d upon his or her return, but instead, is treated as another user. Even a further drawback is that the HTML must be modified in order to operate. Modification of the HTML leads to substantial processing at the server and visibly changed URL links as inspected at the user""s computer.
Although the cookie method can monitor a user even if the user leaves the Web site and later returns, it has a significant drawback in that no information about what the user did during that time is available. Another drawback is that once the user closes the browser, the cookie becomes inactive, and will not be sent on subsequent visits.
All of the above-discussed monitoring programs are invasive of the privacy of the user because the user being monitored has no control over which of his or her activities are being monitored. Thus, a further drawback of all of these systems is that the user has no control over being monitored by this process.
None of the above-discussed programs provide a system that can monitor selected activity of a user using a network terminal, where the user can, in advance, select particular data to be monitored and other data not to be monitored. None of the above-discussed programs provide a system that permits the user to deliver selected portions of the monitored activity to a central repository, and/or make further use of the data resulting from the monitoring activity.
The preferred embodiments of the present invention overcome the problems with the systems and programs described above by providing a method and apparatus for tracking network usage and monitoring selected network activities. The invention also relates to a method and apparatus for rewarding users for particular types of use of a network.
The preferred embodiments of the present invention provide a method of recording an occurrence of a data transmission between a node and a network, comprising: inspecting the data transmission between the node and the network to locate a network address contained in the data transmission; inspecting the data transmission between the node and the network to determine an activity type to be achieved by the data transmission; and recording the activity type and the network address if the network address is one of a plurality of predetermined desired network addresses and the activity type is one of a plurality of predetermined desired activity types.
The preferred embodiments of the present invention also provide for creating an activity file by recording an occurrence of a data transmission between a node and a network, transmitting the activity file over the network to a processing site, evaluating the activity file to determine a reward based upon the activity file, and transmitting indicia of the reward to the node.
Other features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following description of the preferred embodiments of the present invention which are shown in the accompanying drawings.